What fastest sporting clay shells.

hacer2

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Been watching a bit too much TGS lately, and one of the common themes talked about is super fast shells 1500, 1550, 1600, 1700 FPS.

What I normally see available to us is appears to range between 1100 and 1350 fps.

Do we have any high speed shells available on the market?
 
Those are indeed fast loads and about 1400 fps target loads are as fast as I have seen available in Canada. But muzzle velocity in the UK is just that, while in NA it is measured 3’ from the muzzle.
 
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Lol that would probably give him too much pleasure.

Anyway figured if they worked well to reach out and dust em I may as well hand load a few spicy ones.
 
I shoot trap and ATA states:

Any load with a velocity greater than 1290 FPS (Feet Per Second) with
maximum shot charge of 1 1/8 ounces, or 1325 FPS with a maximum
shot charge of 1 ounce, or 1350 FPS with a maximum shot charge
of 7/8 ounces or less, as measured in any individual shotshell. These
velocities are maximum and no individual shotshell shall exceed these
limits for the designated shot charge. In addition, no load containing
more than 1 1/8 ounces or any shot larger than Number 7 1/2 can
be used. Shot charges are maximum and no charge may exceed
the charge amount by more than 3%. Steel shot in Number 7 will be
acceptable as long as velocity criteria are the same as for lead shot
shells.

Does sporting clays have a rulebook?
 
I shoot trap and ATA states:

Any load with a velocity greater than 1290 FPS (Feet Per Second) with
maximum shot charge of 1 1/8 ounces, or 1325 FPS with a maximum
shot charge of 1 ounce, or 1350 FPS with a maximum shot charge
of 7/8 ounces or less, as measured in any individual shotshell. These
velocities are maximum and no individual shotshell shall exceed these
limits for the designated shot charge. In addition, no load containing
more than 1 1/8 ounces or any shot larger than Number 7 1/2 can
be used. Shot charges are maximum and no charge may exceed
the charge amount by more than 3%. Steel shot in Number 7 will be
acceptable as long as velocity criteria are the same as for lead shot
shells.

Does sporting clays have a rulebook?

I would guess without actually researching it that FITASC would have similar rules.
 
Been watching a bit too much TGS lately, and one of the common themes talked about is super fast shells 1500, 1550, 1600, 1700 FPS.

What I normally see available to us is appears to range between 1100 and 1350 fps.

Do we have any high speed shells available on the market?

I suspect those fast shells may be using steel shot. Trap loads in North America are limited to 1290 and FITASC is 1350 or 1400… can’t remember. I haven’t checked the sporting clays rules lately but there never used to be a speed limit.
 
No speed limits for FITASC, Compak or sporting. My desktop froze two weeks ago. But, if I remember the European measure at the muzzle and 3 meters. BTW RC had the best SD of only 9 FPS!
 
what stripper said, man that's the same kind of punishment with anything over 1300fps. why would you.
i shoot 1 ounce loads, with 1100, 1145, and 1150 fps. never had a problem breaking what i aimed at.
 
I prefer 1 ounce loads at 1200fps, but I bought some AA 1-1/8oz loads at 1300fps, because the price was right. And 1-1/8oz at 1300fps is as much recoil as I want to deal with when shooting 100 or more rounds at a session out of my sporting clays O/U.
 
what stripper said, man that's the same kind of punishment with anything over 1300fps. why would you.
i shoot 1 ounce loads, with 1100, 1145, and 1150 fps. never had a problem breaking what i aimed at.

While I agree that any standard shells at normal target load speeds will work just fine, I would still ask why wouldn't you want more if available.

Same reason a guy would run a $20k over/under when a Cooey single shot can still break clays. If we stuck forever using what works, we would all have the same 4 boring guns. If I seen some 1700fps factory rounds I would certainly pick some up for wildly far shots that I have seen over the years as sporting clays.

Recoil never bothered me much though and I like to experiment.
 
There are several reasons not to use faster shells. One is the recoil. Another is that the faster load slows down faster due to wind resistance/friction so that at long distances the extra speed advantage is negated for the most part. A 1250 fps load at 40 yards will be traveling at the same speed as a 1150 fps load, yes it will get there slightly faster but after that there is no advantage. The faster you push a load of shot the faster it spreads, this is why shooters shooting long distances don't tend to migrate to the faster loads, it's to keep the pattern together longer.
I'm not totally poo pooing the fast loads and I do tend to use 1300 fps loads for far sporting clays targets but that is to try making up for my own slowness because like I said, it will get out there to 40 yards a nano second faster and one target can make a difference in competition, not because it has any other advantage.
 
For 16 yard ATA Trap, it’s 1,150 FPS for me (approx. 2-3/4 Dram equivalent) but always 1-1/8 Ounce.
Hottest ammo I’d shoot is 1,200 FPS for Handicaps.
 
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